The day Su Rong’s caravan set off from Daliang’s Capital City, a few dozen carts full of goods from the Eastern Palace, accompanied by ten thousand soldiers sent by the Crown Prince, joined the convoy.
The head of the escort was stupefied and asked the commanding officer, "Sir, what is all this...?"
"These are gifts from His Highness the Crown Prince to the Nanchu Princess." The officer explained.
The official was shocked. "This... this is too much."
The officer nodded. "Hence, His Highness has ordered me to provide an escort of ten thousand soldiers."
The official was speechless, guessing that the Crown Prince was planning to empty his Eastern Palace’s warehouse as a gift to the Nanchu ruler. Impossible!
However, the commanding officer didn’t hide the truth from him, lowering his voice and saying, "These are from the private treasury left in the Imperial Palace by the late Princess Zhenmin. His Majesty and the Crown Prince are sending it to Nanchu to be given to the Princess."
The official suddenly understood. "I see."
He had thought it odd that there were so many items.
Meanwhile, on the same day, Shen Yi gave birth. Su Rong, along with Nangong Xin and the wet nurse Zhao, personally accompanied her throughout the process, together with the palace staff.
Back at Shen Residence, the waiting midwife had everything prearranged. Su Rong sent someone to fetch Dr. Zhang as well.
Shen Yi’s agonizing cries from the delivery room made Su Rong break out in a sweat. Nangong Xin also looked concerned. "Why is she screaming so horribly?"
In recent years, no infants had been born in the Nanchu Royal Palace. Therefore, she had never witnessed a childbirth before and it was a shock seeing it firsthand. Even in the past, when her own Nangong family was thriving, she, being a maiden, was not allowed to witness childbirths.
Even Su Rong felt it was rather brutal. She asked Dr. Zhang, "Will my sister be alright?"
He answered, "She should be fine, Your Highness. Rest assured. I’ve taken her pulse. It’s a normal delivery."
Su Rong nodded. "If it gets too difficult, you should go in and assist the wet nurse."
Dr. Zhang complied.
Being a male doctor, it wasn’t appropriate for him to directly take part in the delivery unless it was a dire situation. Lan Zhi and Bi Qing had been in the room the whole time, assisting the wet nurse and the midwife.
Each time a basin full of bloody water was brought out from the room, Su Rong couldn’t help but feel a pang of discomfort.
Nangong Xin reached out to take Su Rong’s hand, finding them both cold as ice. Nevertheless, she put up a brave face, comforting Su Rong, "Don’t be scared."
Considering Nangong Xin’s age, even if she were to find a husband in the future, there was no guarantee she would bear a child. However, since Su Rong needed to produce an heir, Nangong Xin was worried that the sight would scare her from trying.
Su Rong gave a wry smile. "I’m not scared."
Fortunately, Shen Yi’s delivery was fairly smooth. After only a few hours, she successfully gave birth to a son.
The two women let out a sigh of relief.
wet nurse Zhao cleaned up the baby and brought it to Su Rong. "Your Highness, Your Majesty, Miss Shen has given birth to a little boy."
The child appeared exceptionally thin and frail because of the adversity he endured inside his mother’s womb, his cries not very loud.
Su Rong took a look and said to Dr. Zhang, "Please, check the baby."
After a careful examination, Dr. Zhang said, "Your Highness, this child has suffered some trauma in his mother’s womb. We’d to strive painstakingly multiple times to maintain the pregnancy. Although he is fully formed, he is quite weak which could present future health problems. He’ll need to be cared for carefully with good medicine."
Su Rong nodded. This child had suffered a lot while in Shen Yi’s womb, going through war with them. Even though she was with child at that time, she couldn’t be too careful. That the child was born healthy was already his good fortune.
She reached over and clumsily held the child, who was so small and weak that she didn’t dare to use any force. Looking at his tiny figure, she said: "Then we’ll use various good medicines to nurse him back. I trust in your medical skills, Dr. Zhang."
Dr. Zhang responded solemnly, "Your Highness, you put too much trust in me. I’ll do my best nonetheless."
After holding the baby for a short while, Su Rong handed him back to wet nurse Zhao and said, "Wet nurse Zhao, my sister will be taking a month off for postnatal recovery. During this time, please stay at the Shen Residence to care for her."
Wet nurse Zhao agreed. "Your Highness, rest assured."
Su Rong then went into the delivery room to see Shen Yi, who was drenched in sweat and visibly weak. She said, "My sister, you’ve worked hard. Don’t worry. Your son may be weak, but he’s fully formed. If we use good medicine and take care of him properly, he’ll recover."
Shen Yi nodded. "Finally, the load is off. I feel much lighter."
Su Rong smiled at her. "My sister, you’re incredible. The bond of a mother is truly remarkable."
Shen Yi asked her, "I didn’t scare you off, did I? I even told wet nurse Zhao to send you away, but you wouldn’t leave."
"No, your screams were indeed horrifying, but they’re much better than the howls you hear on a battlefield." Su Rong firmly refused to admit that she had been scared.
Amused, Shen Yi urged her, "There’s no need for you to stay with me any longer. Go back to the palace. There must be lots of work waiting for you."
Realizing how tired Shen Yi was, Su Rong agreed, "Alright, you should rest well. Don’t worry about the baby. I’ll leave wet nurse Zhao here to take care of you and your child for a month."
Shen Yi nodded her thanks. "Alright, thank you, my sister."
She felt a sense of warmth. She had never imagined that she could have someone from her family with her. Despite her busy schedule as a princess, Su Rong had taken half a day to be with her.
Nangong Xin and Su Rong returned to the palace together in the same carriage, both having regained their composure.
Nangong Xin asked Su Rong, "Do you remember what you promised me a while ago? You said you’d let me leave the palace."
"I remember."
Nangong Xin let out a sigh of relief. "Outside the palace is so much better."
Su Rong smiled, "Of course."
Without the confining palace walls, she had the freedom to do as she pleased, and there were not so many eyes watching her every move.
A month later, it was Su Rong’s birthday.
The Nanchu King insisted on hosting a banquet in her honor, inviting all the courtiers to celebrate the Princess’s birthday.
Su Rong disagreed. "It’s been such a busy year, and everyone is exhausted. Please don’t trouble them any further."
She would rather have a quiet meal with her family.’
The Nanchu King disagreed, quite reasonably, "You are the Princess, the heir to the throne. It’s your first birthday since your return to the royal capital. How can it be so casually celebrated? I did neglect Zhou Gu’s birthday due to being preoccupied, but I can’t do the same with yours. Plus, just think about it, when was the last time the court officials had a break? Your birthday provides an excellent opportunity for them to relax."
Su Rong suggested, "Then give everyone a day off."
"You just do as I say," the Nanchu King responded, "This birthday must be celebrated. We will take three days off from court duties. The first day is for your birthday. The next two days will be a holiday for everyone else to rest."
Su Rong looked at him in surprise. "Three days off from court? Father, you’re not joking, are you? The rainy season is upon us."
"You have been working non-stop for six months," the Nanchu King responded sternly. "All the preparatory work you did in the beginning was to get ready for the rainy season. People are not made of iron. Haven’t you noticed that all the court officials under you have lost weight due to stress? The thin ones are even paler. Even horses pulling carriages and donkeys working the mill need rest. If you don’t rest, how can they have a proper break?"
Su Rong fell silent.
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